Capriotti's

"Capriotti" redirects here. Not to be confused with Caprotti.
Capriotti's Sandwich Shop, Inc.
Company typePrivate
IndustryRestaurants
GenreFast Casual
Founded1976; 48 years ago (1976)
Wilmington, Delaware, US
FoundersLois and Alan Margolet
HeadquartersLas Vegas, Nevada, U.S.
Number of locations
112[1]
Area served
United States
Key people
Ashley Morris (CEO)
Jason Smylie (CIO)
George Chanos (Chairman)
David Bloom (CDO/COO)
Brent D. Erwin (CFO)
Products
RevenueIncrease US$150 million (FEB 2021)[1]
Number of employees
About 1,000[1]
Websitewww.capriottis.com

Capriotti's Sandwich Shop, Inc. (also called Capriotti's) is a fast casual restaurant chain in the United States.[2] The restaurant chain was founded in Wilmington, Delaware in 1976.[3] Capriotti's has 112 company-owned and franchise locations in 27 states.[1][3][4][5][6]

History

Capriotti's was founded in Little Italy, Wilmington, Delaware in 1976.[3][4][7] The restaurant is named after the founders' grandfather, Philip Capriotti.[3][8] In 1988, the second restaurant location opened in New Castle, Delaware. In 1991, Capriotti's began franchising their restaurants.[9]

Counter area of a Capriotti's in Rosslyn, Arlington, Virginia (now closed)

In 1993, the first restaurant location in Las Vegas, Nevada was opened on Sahara Avenue, near Las Vegas Boulevard.[10] In 2004, Ashley Morris and Jason Smylie opened a franchise in Las Vegas. At the time, Morris was the youngest financial adviser at Wells Fargo.[10][11][12][13] Smylie was a software engineer at Bechtel Nevada. Morris and Smylie were also investors in the housing market and made the decision to invest in a franchise after learning that the return on investment was higher than anything they were looking at investing in.[13] In 2007, Morris and Smylie put the company in escrow. In the following year Morris, Smylie and a group of investors consisting of 95% Las Vegans bought Capriotti's. Capriotti's had 44 restaurant locations by the end of 2008.[12] Morris is the CEO of the company.[12][13][14][15] In 2008 and 2009 the chain was the official sandwich sponsor of the World Series of Poker in Las Vegas.[16][17] Capriotti's was ranked in Entrepreneur magazine's top 500 franchise list in 2010 and remained ranked through 2014.[12]

Joe Biden at the opening of a Capriotti's in Washington, D.C., in 2013.

Capriotti's starred on Food Network's Unwrapped in December 2011.[18][19] In November 2013, Capriotti's expanded its presence on the East Coast by opening its first location in Washington DC.[20][21] Joe Biden was the first customer served at the store's grand opening.[21][22][23] That year, Capriotti's brought in over $58 million in revenue and experienced a 48% growth over the previous three years.[24] In 2014, the company was named one of the "Top 10 Best Food Franchises for Your Buck" and one of "America's Best Franchises" by Forbes magazine.[25][26]

The Sandelman & Associates Quick Track Study on the Top 10 Quick Service Restaurant Concepts ranked Capriotti's among the top ten in overall satisfaction[27] and won the award for highest quality and taste in the 2014 study.[28]

Business operations

Capriotti's is now based in Las Vegas, Nevada and has its largest concentration of shops there. The restaurant chain has 112 locations in 27 states including: Arizona, Arkansas, California, Colorado, Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Maryland, Massachusetts, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, Nevada, North Carolina, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Carolina, South Dakota, Texas, Utah, Washington State and Wisconsin.[5][6][29] In 2014, it ranked #293 in Entrepreneur's Franchise 500. In 2016, Capriotti's was ranked #264 in Entrepreneur's Franchise 500.[30]

Products

Bobbies from Capriotti's

Capriotti's specializes in cold, grilled, and vegetarian hoagies or submarine sandwiches.[6] Each restaurant roasts whole turkeys for 12 hours nightly, hand pulls meats, and makes their own meatballs and coleslaw.[5][7][9]

In November 2009, the Bobbie, one of Capriotti's signature sandwiches, was voted "The Greatest Sandwich in America" by AOL.com.[31] The sandwich is made with pulled turkey, cranberry sauce, stuffing and mayonnaise.[31] The Margolets named it after their aunt.[32] In 2012, USA Today named Capriotti's one of the "10 Great Places for a Surprising Sandwich".[33]

Technology

Capriotti has utilized Google Glass to re-record employee training videos in a first person view.[34] Management trainees also wear Google Glass during rush hour periods and review the footage for constructive visual feedback.[34][35] Capriotti's uses an app-based loyalty program.[36]

References

  1. ^ a b c d John Grossmann (January 28, 2015). "Using Smartphones and Apps to Enhance Loyalty Programs". The New York Times. Retrieved February 1, 2015.
  2. ^ "Franchise Chatter Exclusive: Q&A Interview with Ashley Morris, CEO of Capriotti's". 16 November 2011. Retrieved April 19, 2015.
  3. ^ a b c d "Capriotti's Sandwich Shop Inc". Retrieved 2014-07-18.
  4. ^ a b Samara Kalk Derby (2010-05-20). "Capriotti's Sandwiches Stand Out Amid Competitors". The Capital Times & Wisconsin State Journal.
  5. ^ a b c Ethan Rothstein (2013-10-18). "Capriotti's Sandwich Shop Coming to Rosslyn". Retrieved 2014-07-18.
  6. ^ a b c "Capriotti's Sandwich Shop Celebrates 100th Restaurant12-23-2013". Retrieved 2014-07-18.
  7. ^ a b Lauren Jow (2014-01-22). "Las Vegas-based sandwich shop opens at The Market Place". The Orange County Register.
  8. ^ Jill Henebry (January 1995). "Talking turkey -- Capriotti's branches out". Delaware Business Review.
  9. ^ a b Lindsay Friedman (June 22, 2016). "Franchise of the Day: To Stand Out From Its Competitors, This Sandwich Shop Has an Extra Tasty Nightly Ritual". Entrepreneur. Retrieved August 1, 2016.
  10. ^ a b Tovin Lapan (2012-04-10). "Capriotti's Bobbie collects yet another accolade; "Encyclopedia of Sandwiches" author tells USA Today that shop's turkey sub is among her favorites". Las Vegas Sun.
  11. ^ Tim O'Reiley (2011-03-21). "Heroes welcome? Well, not as envisioned". Las Vegas Business Press.
  12. ^ a b c d Tracy Stapp Herold (2013-10-18). "No Ordinary Hero". Retrieved 2014-07-18.
  13. ^ a b c Tracy Stapp Herold (2010-03-25). "No Ordinary Hero". Retrieved 2014-07-18.
  14. ^ Steven R. Thompson (2012-10-07). "Capriotti's plans growth". Dallas Business Journal.
  15. ^ Hannah Fry (2011-06-14). "Capriotti's Sandwich shops to invade Orange County". The Orange County Register.
  16. ^ Ryan Saxton. "Popular First State sandwich shop moving into Bethany". Archived from the original on 2014-07-25. Retrieved 2014-07-18.
  17. ^ "Capriotti's named World Series of Poker sandwich sponsor". 2008-06-18. Retrieved 2014-07-18.
  18. ^ "Capriotti's Unwrapped on Food Network". YouTube. 2011-12-06. Archived from the original on 2021-12-21. Retrieved 2014-07-18.
  19. ^ "MARKETPLACE: Capriotti's Sandwich Shop". 2012-01-29. Retrieved 2014-07-18.
  20. ^ Josh Lederman (2013-11-21). "Joe Biden Welcomes Delaware-Born Sandwich Shop To D.C., Comes Up Short When Trying To Pay The Bill". HuffPost. Retrieved 2014-07-18.
  21. ^ a b "Vice President Joe Biden Visits Capriotti's". January 2014. Retrieved 2014-07-18.
  22. ^ "Capriotti's Opens With Free Sandwiches, A Visit From Joe Biden". 2013-11-21. Archived from the original on 2013-11-24. Retrieved 2014-07-18.
  23. ^ "Biden Borrows Money to Pay For Lunch at New D.C. Sandwich Shop". 2013-11-21. Retrieved 2014-07-18.
  24. ^ "Here's Why One CEO Always Wants To Be 'The Dumbest Guy In The Room'". September 17, 2014. Retrieved April 16, 2015.
  25. ^ Emily Inverso (2014-05-27). "The 10 Best Food Franchises For Your Buck". Forbes. Retrieved 2014-07-18.
  26. ^ "The Best and Worst Franchises In America". Forbes. Archived from the original on May 31, 2014. Retrieved 2014-07-18.
  27. ^ "Panera, Chick-fil-A, Papa Murphy's receive Award of Excellence". Pizza Marketplace. February 11, 2015. Retrieved August 26, 2015.
  28. ^ Renita D. Young (February 13, 2015). "Raising Cane's, CC's among top 10 Excellent Fast-Food Chains nationally". The Times Picayune. Retrieved August 26, 2015.
  29. ^ Wil Fulton (June 17, 2016). "The Next Jimmy John's: Sandwich Chains That Could Take Over America". Thrillist. Retrieved August 1, 2016.
  30. ^ "Top Food Franchises of 2016". Entrepreneur. June 18, 2016. Retrieved August 1, 2016.
  31. ^ a b "Capriotti's Sandwich Shop". Archived from the original on 2014-07-26. Retrieved 2014-07-18.
  32. ^ Cristina Perachio (2013-11-16). "You're Quite the Dish: The Bobbie at Capriotti's". Archived from the original on 2014-07-25. Retrieved 2014-07-18.
  33. ^ "Capriotti's Sandwich Shop Targets Houston For Major Expansion". Archived from the original on 2014-07-25. Retrieved 2014-07-18.
  34. ^ a b Nina Meijers (2013-08-01). "Google Glass for Restaurant Employee Training". Retrieved 2014-07-18.
  35. ^ "This Sandwich Shop's Special Ingredient? Google Glass". September 11, 2013. Retrieved April 16, 2015.
  36. ^ Grossmann, John (January 28, 2015). "Using Smartphones and Apps to Enhance Loyalty Programs". The New York Times. Retrieved April 16, 2015.
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